Chapter 363: Crisis!
Fleets had a wartime and a peacetime configuration. In peacetime, capital s.h.i.+ps acted as more of a deterrence, and combined fleets would usually just have a single carrier capital s.h.i.+p as support, while a dreadnought would hardly be in use.
A carrier was considered as a multipurpose wars.h.i.+p, possessing powerful combat capabilities while also serving as the best logistical support to a fleet, providing repairs, supplies, and other auxiliary tasks.
Meanwhile, the purpose of a dreadnought directly contrasted that of a carrier; it boasted both a devastating firepower and a thickly reinforced hull. It would not provide any logistical support to any other s.h.i.+ps but only serve itself. Its very existence was to attack, attack, and attack again.
Soldiers gave the carrier the intimate nickname ‘Nanny’ because if a fleet had a carrier, then there would be no need for them to dock for repairs back in a s.p.a.ceport. If a wars.h.i.+p got damaged, it merely had to go into the belly of the carrier and it could be restocked, repaired, and maintained. These tasks it accomplished made it similar to the role of a mother, taking care of every crew’s need in a fleet.
In contrast, the soldiers called the dreadnought the ‘G.o.d of Death’. Violent and irascible, its firepower triumphed those of hundreds of battles.h.i.+ps, serving no other purpose beyond charging into battle. A dreadnought would no longer be able to move the moment its cannons began firing, and it would either just lay waste to the enemy or be destroyed itself.
Having both the dreadnought and the carrier in the fleet was the standard wartime configuration, so why would the insectoids send the dreadnoughts out? Could they be planning to launch an attack on someone?
“Scan all the enemy wars.h.i.+ps. I want to know if all the fleets are in wartime configuration.” Xia Fei gave the order.
Soon, the scan results appeared on the holographic screen and Xia Fei could not help but suck in a cold breath.
“Three hundred fifty insectoid fleets, and all of them in wartime configuration. This isn’t normal.” Phantom was skeptical.
Xia Fei immediately established a super long range communication through the Black Bat radar to the Alliance Military.
“General Williams, we’ve already arrived in the insectoid territory.”
“Fleet Commander Du Fuwei has already informed us of that. Do you have anything special to report?”
The three fleets on this mission had Li Mo, Xia Fei, and Du Fuwei in command. Du Fuwei was the overall commander of these three fleets, so he would be the first to report if anything were to crop up.
Xia Fei solemnly said, “Did Du Fuwei tell you anything strange about the insectoid fleets’ configuration?”
“What’s strange about it?” Williams asked.
“Every single fleet is in wartime configuration, having both a carrier and a dreadnought in position.”
“Say that again.”
“They are all in wartime configuration—a dual capital s.h.i.+p setup.”
Williams rubbed his chin for a full two minutes. “Continue observation. Report first to Du Fuwei if anything crops up. After all, he’s the one in charge of this mission, and our military commander Ashley is aboard his s.h.i.+p. If there’s a need to adapt to changing circ.u.mstances, they’ll be the ones making the decisions.”
Xia Fei nodded, not saying a word.
Williams hung up and immediately contacted the silver-haired general Tai.
“Xia Fei just sent a message that, though the insectoids’ total fleets are fewer than ours, all of them are in the standard wartime configuration, dual capital s.h.i.+p setup,” Williams said gravely.
…
Three hours later.
The thousands of insectoid wars.h.i.+ps were still staring at the three measly fleets from afar. Each second pa.s.sed; Xia Fei tried to contact the insectoids, but they rejected his communication request, neither speaking nor letting Xia Fei and the others pa.s.s.
The atmosphere was strangely tense. It was a huge mental pressure for all to be in this standoff. After all, they were in enemy territory, facing up against many foes that were tens and thousands of times stronger than theirs.
No one knew why the insectoids were acting so strangely. Xia Fei’s fleet was akin to a dried leaf which had fallen off the tree. A light breeze was all it would take to send him scattering into the winds.
…
The holographic screen suddenly appeared, and a vexed Williams was on it. The always calm and composed man was under such great pressure that he seemed a little fl.u.s.tered.
“Any movement from the insectoids yet?”
“None whatsoever.”
“It’s the same over at the Endaro Star Region. The three insectoid fleets are completely surrounded by our s.h.i.+ps, and from our scans, we can clearly see every insectoids’ silhouettes, but they have rejected all our attempts at establis.h.i.+ng communication, merely staying there stationary in s.p.a.ce.”
Xia Fei was deep in thought. No doubt that their current situation was very curious. The insectoids were the ones who had come forward with great enthusiasm to discuss trade with the Pan-human Alliance. Could they have had a change of heart at this point?
“General, what should we do?” Xia Fei asked.
Williams let out a long sigh as he gave the order. “Continue waiting. More fleets are heading to Endaro Star Region. We must let the insectoid know that the Alliance isn’t afraid of a challenge. If they dare to try anything funny, we’ll be sure to let them pay the ultimate price!”
…
Xia Fei felt as if he had been duped. What was initially agreed upon as establis.h.i.+ng trade between the two races had become a stalemate between the humans and insectoids.
The Wild Star Region was like an exclusionary zone; now, this divide had been pulled down. For thousands of years, these two races had been peering at each other through the safety of this exclusionary zone, and this was actually the first time the fleets from both races would actually be so close since the two sapient races had their hundred years of war with each other before.
…
In the Endaro Star Region, the three small insectoid fleets were surrounded by the nearly six hundred combined fleets of the Pan-human Alliance. The insectoids were like several c.o.c.kroaches surrounded by a crowd of humans, the former quietly waiting in the human territory, neither daring to leave, advance, or even establish any connection with the humans.
Though humans detested c.o.c.kroaches and wished that they could just kill them with a stomp of their feet, their hands were also tied. This was a diplomatic mission, and firing even a single shot would mean pulling the humans and insectoids into an all-out war.
Humans would not be afraid of one or two c.o.c.kroaches, but anyone would feel abject fear if they came crawling out in the hundreds of thousands.
On another end, in the Wild Star Region, Xia Fei and the other humans were being surrounded by this large host of c.o.c.kroaches. They were not letting Xia Fei pa.s.s, nor were they letting them leave or attempt any communication.
Xia Fei suddenly thought of a terrible problem: Since the very beginning of the proposed trade agreement, the final awkward compromise and now this absurd stalemate here in the Wild Star Region, it had always been the insectoids that held the initiative, while the humans were the ones being led around by their noses. In the end, they did not even give any explanation to speak of and forced billions of Alliance soldiers to be on standby near the borders.
Xia Fei felt a very strong uneasiness in his heart. Any humans would hate being surrounded by such a large group of bugs like this, but there was nothing he could do in this situation. When the two powerful races in this universe were caught in a contest of brinkmans.h.i.+p, an individual’s strength was incomparably miniscule, incapable of changing anything.
This situation carried on in such a manner, and before he knew it, a whole month had pa.s.sed.
Xia Fei was already slowly getting used to this life, where he would be watched by the insectoids in front the moment he woke up as he kept cultivating and learning according to his schedule daily, even managing to finish concocting the medication to raise the rank of his special ability, though he failed to find any opportunity to consume it.
Xia Fei would have to suffer immense pain every time he ranked up in this manner, causing him to lose the freedom of his movement for a time, unable to react to whatever was happening around him.
Faced against these hundred of thousands of cannons all pointed at him, Xia Fei had no intention of losing even a second of consciousness. That was why Xia Fei had decided to first wait until things became slightly more peaceful before he searched for a more appropriate time to consume the medication.
The military would send a simple report to Xia Fei through the Black Bat radar, the contents of which covering the negotiations, as well as a.s.suaging the three fleets not to panic and to wait for the results patiently.
In the beginning, Xia Fei would give these reports a good look, but in the end, he got lazy from even glancing at the briefing. The message was always the same, stating how the military lacked the ability to relieve them of the situation, with hardly anything new to report.
The military presence of the insectoids increased every day, and after a whole month of this standstill, there were over five hundred fleets, increasing from the three hundred fifty combined fleets that had first surrounded Xia Fei a month ago.
The Alliance had also increased their numbers accordingly, stuffing seven hundred combined fleets in a show of force right by the borders, maintaining their numerical superiority over the number of insectoid wars.h.i.+ps they could see. Wrangling the fleets from the various bases scattered all across Alliance territory, with new fleets joining in every day.
At this rate, it would only be a matter of time before the entire Alliance military’s naval fleet would be gathered here right by the borders, so who would be protecting the other potential entrances?
Furthermore, gathering so many fleets as they did would require an astronomical sum of money. People needed to eat every day, and the cost to keep them all fed daily was insane. Even if there was no invasion, the Alliance might very well be killed just from the military expenditure alone.
The Alliance continued to spend as this grim situation persisted, and the huge pressure made it difficult for every single one of them to breathe.
…
While Xia Fei was trapped by one border of the insectoid territory, unable to advance or retreat deep in s.p.a.ce, there were other fleets secretly being gathered. More than six hundred fleets had been gathered here against the backdrop of the dark red s.p.a.ce over the last few months, and this gathering was even stronger than the fleets guarding the borders. It could be said that these fleets were the true gathering of the strongest insectoid fleets.
At this moment, the colossal and ferocious fleets were all already ready to go, and they were merely waiting for General Tanini to give the order.
Wudi was the smartest chieftain of the Golden Tent, someone with an intellect that the entire insectoid race admired and envied. Similarly, the fact that he was of the mite species meant his short and skinny stature was constantly criticized by his fellows.
…
As the biological brother of Wudi, Tanini’s situation was no better than his older brother. Even though he was half a head taller than Wudi, he was still only 0.65 meters tall.
“Carry me up,” General Tanini raised his head and said in a high voice. His height and voice were not at all congruent, so he sounded high-pitched when he spoke, tinkling like a bell.
A big and tall warrior of the mantis species immediately squatted and lifted General Tanini high above his head. He extended his long arms to lift him up to the podium.
Tidying his uniform, General Tanini proceeded to face the video camera and declared loudly, “Soldiers, the day that you’ve long been waiting for is upon us.”
“As long as we cross this invisible wormhole, we’ll be directly transported into human territory, some 4.9 million lightyears away from the Venal galaxy.
“At the moment, the human army has already been forced to congregate by the borders, and those stupid humans will never have thought of the real enemy appearing in a handful of hours right near their capital, descending upon them from out of nowhere.”
General Tanini was getting more and more excited as he spoke, his green eyes releasing a savage glow.
“We’ll be killing our way right into the heart of the capital, pillaging their treasures, eating their women and children, pulling out their intestines and stuffing them back in before pulling them out again to choke the lights out of their eyes with them.”
“Long live the insectoids! Long live Wudi! The entire universe shall belong to us!”
A thunderous applause rang out in that dark and murky s.p.a.ce as the insectoids set off with a desire for bloodletting…